Blake (episode)
Blake was the final episode of Series D, making it the final episode of Blake's 7. It is the final appearance of all the main cast, plus Blake. It also features the crash landing of Scorpio on the surface of Gauda Prime. Synopsis From the VHS release: With the Xenon base destroyed and the fledgling alliance floundering, Avon must find another figurehead to take up the cause. Inevitably it is time to set a course for the lawless Gauda Prime to renew an old acquaintance... Plot Scorpio leaves Xenon Base and the crew detonate explosives to destroy it: Following Zukan's betrayal, they feel it is no longer secure. Avon is determined to keep his alliance against the Federation going and, searching for another figurehead to lead them, he sets a course for Gauda Prime: He has determined that it is the location of Blake. On Gauda Prime, Blake offers refuge at his camp to a fugitive named Arlen. They are attacked by a trio of bounty hunters: Arlen kills two of them but is overpowered by the third, Tando. Blake kills the man but then turns his gun on Arlen: He too is a bounty hunter. He takes her back to a base where they are greeted by a woman named Klyn and hands her over to the base chief, Deva. Soolin, who grew up on Gauda Prime, explains the planet's history: It was a farming planet but was discovered to be rich in minerals. In order to get rid of the farmers, the authorities suspended the penal code. Criminals could no longer be arrested there so every fugitive in the galaxy took refuge on the planet and a group of them killed Soolin's family. Avon and Orac fill the crew in on recent history: Gauda Prime has applied to join the Federation but first has to get rid of the criminals. Hence, bounty hunters are flocking to the planet, Blake among them. As Scorpio approaches the planet, it is fired on by ships blockading it. The crew attempt to fake a crash but turn out to be really out of control. Vila, Dayna and Soolin evacuate by teleport. Avon and Orac follow but Tarrant needs to stay at the controls to keep the ship steady. The ship ploughs into the surface. Slave shuts down but Tarrant is found by Blake. Vila, Dayna and Soolin are attacked by a group of bounty hunters but rescued by Avon: He had Orac draw them to the area in order to steal their flyer, not realising the rest of the crew were there. Orac tracks another flyer, which is actually the one carrying Blake and Tarrant. Blake tells Tarrant he learned his evasion pattern from Jenna, who was killed when she was attacked running the blockade and blew up her own ship, taking half the squadron with her. Blake takes Tarrant to the base but then hands him over to Deva as a prisoner and tells him to allow Avon and the others to land, since they are all high on the Federation wanted list. Arlen enters, now dressed as a guard, but Tarrant manages to escape. Blake and Deva are actually using the bounty hunter charade to locate those like Tarrant and Arlen who could form a new rebellion against the Federation. Tarrant attempts to fight his way out of the control room. Avon, Vila, Dayna and Soolin arrive and Avon kills Klyn when she sends out a call for help. Blake and Arlen enter and Tarrant says Blake has betrayed them. Avon shoots Blake repeatedly, killing him. Deva rushes in and announces they are under attack from the Federation but is killed by Arlen, who then orders the crew to surrender their weapons: She is a Federation officer. Vila holds Arlen's attention while Dayna tries to retrieve her gun but Arlen sees and kills Dayna. Vila knocks Arlen unconscious but is gunned down by the first Federation trooper to enter. More troopers enter and Tarrant and Soolin are also gunned down. The troopers surround Avon, who raises his gun and smiles. Gunfire is heard. Cast *Avon - Paul Darrow *Vila - Michael Keating *Dayna - Josette Simon *Tarrant - Steven Pacey *Soolin - Glynis Barber *Slave/Orac - Peter Tuddenham *Roj Blake - Gareth Thomas * Deva - David Collings * Arlen - Sasha Mitchell * Klyn - Janet Lees Price Crew * Production Manager - Henry Foster * Production Associate - Frank Pendlebury * Production Assistant - Winifred Hopkins * Assistant Floor Manager - Laura Gilbert * Film Cameraman - Fintan Sheehan, Colin Case * Film Sound - Dennis Panchen * Film Editor - Sheila S. Tomlinson * Videotape Editor - Malcolm Banthorpe * Visual Effects Designer - Jim Francis, Mike Kelt * Video Effects - Robin Lobb * Graphic Designer - Dick Bailey * Properties Buyer - Francis Smith * Technical Manager - Terry Brett * Senior Cameraman - Dave White * Vision Mixer - Nigel Finnis * Studio Lighting - Warwick Fielding * Studio Sound - Trevor Webster * Special Sound - Elizabeth Parker * Costume Designer - Nicholas Rocker * Make Up Artist - Suzanne Jansen * Music By - Dudley Simpson * Series Created By - Terry Nation Story notes *'Rehearsal:' 26th October 1981 - 4th November 1981. *'Filming:' 13th October 1981 - 15th October 1981. *'Studio Recording': 5th November 1981 - 7th November 1981. * This is the last ever episode of Blake's 7. The only characters to appear in both the first and last episodes are Blake and Vila. Vila is the only character to appear in every episode. * The only characters to appear in all four season finales are Blake, Avon, Vila and Orac (although the Blake who appears in "Terminal" is a hallucination). * This is the only season finale not to feature Cally, Servalan and Zen. * Neither Dayna nor Soolin has any dialogue in the last scene, meaning their last lines are in the scene in the flyer ("Oh, sounds good" and "I wouldn't know" respectively). * Tarrant is the last character to speak in the series, shouting "Avon!" during the final gunfight. * The last scene recorded is where Blake and Tarrant talk amongst the wreck of the Scorpio, which makes Blake's line "It's getting light. Shall we go?" the last words recorded. * This is the only episode in which Peter Tuddenham receives an on screen credit for voicing Slave. He is listed as "Orac Slave". * Writer Chris Boucher intended for the character of Arlen to be more rough around the edges than how Sasha Mtchell played the part. This would then have been revealed to be more obviously a pretence in the final scene when the character then speaks in recieved pronunciation. * Writer Chris Boucher has said he intended the ending to only be a cliffhanger that would lead into a potential fifth series and whichever of actors that agreed to return would be revealed to have survived the shootout. Ratings 9.0M Filming locations A forest in Camberley, Surrey. Production errors * A video camera can be seen moving in the top left of the screen as Klyn observes the Liberator crew approaching Blake's base in the flyer. Continuity * Avon's line, in which he switches from plural to singular, echoes Blake's line from Pressure Point: *: Avon: Have you betrayed us? Have you betrayed me?! *: Blake: We've done it! We've done it! We've done it! I've done it! * There are many references to the events of Warlord. * There are also references to the crew's previous attempt to find Blake in Terminal, including Cally's death (although that actually occurred in "Rescue"), the destruction of the Liberator and the fact Servalan claimed Blake was dead: Avon suggests she was simply lying. * In Powerplay, Tarrant told Avon he would have known if he was Blake. Here, though, he is ignorant of Blake's identity until Blake mentions Jenna. * According to Blake, Jenna was killed when she was attacked running the blockade and blew up her own ship, taking half the squadron with her. Quotes Avon: Figureheads aren't too difficult to come by. Any idiot can be one. Dayna: On your feet, Vila, this could be your big moment. Avon: In the end, winning is the only safety. Arlen: You ask a lot of questions. Blake: Try answering one occasionally, maybe I'll stop. Soolin: Surely you're not afraid of the dark! Vila: Only when it's unilluminated. Slave: (His last words) I'm sorry...I have to close down now. Crash damage and power loss make it impossible for me to continue. May I express the hope that the same is not true for you...Tarrant. Vila: Sooner or later, we're going to drop into one of these holes in the ground and never come out. Avon: Sooner or later, everyone does that, Vila. Home video releases * Original BBC video release (Volume 26) in 1992. * Fabulous Films video reissue (Volume 26) on 17 January 2000. * DVD release as part of the Series 4 box set on 24 April 2006. External links * References Category:Series D episodes